Taking ownership: Buying a yacht abroad

Catherine Lawson offers her how-to guide on buying a yacht abroad, to avoid costly and hard-to-get to mistakes.

Buying a yacht abroad is a scenario few cruisers might dare to pursue. Quite apart from the giant leap of faith required, there are very real costs associated with a cross-your-fingers inspection where you have to fly a significant distance, and the risk that once you get there, the yacht might not turn out to be ‘the one’.

But the upside to buying a yacht that’s a long-haul flight away is the chance to start your next sailing adventure in a totally new region. This kind of adventure is especially worth considering if you have a flexible rhythm to your work and family life, and if the boat in question doesn’t need a lot of work to get her ready to set to sea.

Cruising boats end up in faraway locations for all kinds of reasons, often down to the owners’ situation changing, rather than the boat no longer meeting their needs. Thanks to the complications that come with remoteness, you might find a more faraway boat is priced to sell, and with fewer potential buyers queuing up you may gain better leverage when it comes to negotiating a price. You may also have the chance to bag yourself a bluewater-ready boat, fresh off an ocean passage.

To walk this road you’ll need patience in abundance, and plenty of time to arrange boat inspections, a survey and sea trials – either from afar or once you’ve landed in the yacht’s location. Sale price negotiations might take days or weeks to resolve, and you’ll need to factor in time to sort out paperwork (title transfer, registration and possibly duty payments) and perhaps a haul-out to get the new yacht seaworthy.

Not every buyer has the luxury of such a leisurely time frame but, if you do, the perfect boat in the right sailing grounds can put you right where you want to start your next cruise.

Know what you want when buying a yacht abroad

Before considering an offshore buy you should have narrowed down your wish list to a select number of makes and models. Ideally, especially if shopping for a production boat, you’ll have personally inspected at least one example of each option closer to home.

Offshore buying is not the time for tyre-kicking, so all decisions about mono versus multihull, LOA, number of berths, and so on, should already be made. You might be comparing boats in different ports around the world, weighing up their differing layouts, build years and histories.

You can’t possibly view them all, or hope to uncover their hidden faults without paying for inspections and surveys, so you’ll find you rely heavily upon the honesty of a conscientious broker to provide thorough inventories, condition reports and endless photos.

Before you book flights, start conversations with brokers about each prospective boat’s condition, her pedigree and sailing history, and how motivated the current owners are to move the boat on.

Ask for video walk-throughs and detailed photos, and be ready to send the broker back on board to request more if any specific parts of the rig, engines or power system have been overlooked. Be sure to ask when photos or videos were taken: we’ve twice had sellers email us photos that turned out to be decades-old, and only after we’d arrived found that the boat has suddenly and drastically aged!

Ask friends and fellow cruisers for contacts in the port or harbour you’re hoping to buy in, or post in local sailing Facebook groups for someone willing to walk through the boat and provide independent feedback and photos in return for a small fee. You’d be surprised how supportive cruisers can be.

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Choose your location

Australian Rachel Honey Robertson, operating from Rebak Marina on Langkawi Island, is a Malaysian-based boat broker and cruiser who works almost entirely with buyers who fly in.

Poised on the eastern edge of the Indian Ocean, Rebak Marina gathers circumnavigators and cruisers who arrive on bluewater yachts and catamarans from all corners of the globe. When their passagemaking is over or those big dreams suddenly change, Robertson steps in to find new owners for their loved yachts.

On either side of the world’s oceans you’ll find proven offshore-ready boats looking for new skippers. These boats will likely come equipped with systems that have been both heavily invested in and thoroughly tested, from running rigging to power and navigation systems.

Most will already contain safety and navigation gear and all that’s required for a liveaboard life, from a watermaker, off-grid power system, battery bank and substantial fridge-freezers. Some may offer a washing machine, air conditioning, even a ready fitted Starlink dish and more. All of this adds value and cuts your time in the boatyard significantly if you’re planning to circumnavigate or deliver your boat back home.

But do ask in advance about the availability of boat parts and spares, and skilled tradespeople to assist, especially in very remote destinations. Also check if the boat’s sale location is near a haul-out yard that can handle its size/weight – particularly if considering a multihull.

Do the maths

Factor into your budget all the costs required to ready the boat for sea, including marina or mooring fees, and the cost of someone to conduct a survey, inspection or sea trail, perhaps in your absence.

It’s worth knowing in advance what taxes might be levied on imported boat parts too, especially if the boat needs substantial work or replacements. In Indonesia we were hit with hefty 40% import duties on boat parts, while in Malaysia’s neighbouring Langkawi Island, all our purchases arrived duty-free. That makes a considerable difference if you need to replace costly items such as a liferaft or want to bring in new sails.

If you are planning to sail your boat directly home, consider the amount of time and the number of crew you’d need to reach your home port or alternatively, the costs of relocating your partner and family abroad.

Make a deal

Broker Rachel Honey Robertson says that boats in foreign location marinas have often proven themselves on lengthy passages. “You will most likely get a more seaworthy boat,” she says, “and cruisers are often willing to sell their boats at a better price than if they’d sailed them back home.”

This became especially true after the world’s Covid hiatus, when the world’s distant ports and harbours were filled with unreachable beauties. The best of those bargains have long been snapped up, but dreams continue to change and money, unfortunately, still runs out.

If you have more time than upfront cash to spend, buying a faraway fixer-upper or project boat can be an exciting prospect, particularly if the boat lies in a country you’d love to explore. You’ll need to be a jack-of-all-trades to tackle the hundreds of jobs, and substantial patience to endure life on the hard stand, but if it suits your timeline, and you paid little at purchase, this can be a great option.

When it comes to price, a broker can help bring seller and buyer goals onto the same page. Don’t be afraid to consider boats above your budget, or to make offers that reflect the true value of the vessel. “I always say ‘make an offer’ because I don’t know what situation the seller is at, and things change so quickly,” adds Rachel Robertson.

Check CE Certification

Broker Alex Grabau explains: “If a UK or EU buyer is looking to buy a boat outside of those territories, it’s quite possible the boat is not UKCR or CE certified. That’s fine if they intend to cruise away from home waters, but if they want the boat at home, they’ll need to go through the potentially costly and complex process of CE Certification (as they’ll be the legal ‘importer’ of the boat and so criminally liable for compliance).

“Quite often, this will require replacement of the engine if it doesn’t have RCDII certification.” Grabau advises contacting HPI Verification Services, the UK’s approved body for both UKCA and CE.

Three to consider

Roberts 54, Antipodes III – US$230,000

This Roberts/Sullivan steel ketch, custom built for bluewater adventures, is described as in turnkey condition. Antipodes III is a centre cockpit, pilothouse yacht. Includes new solar panels, a watermaker, diesel heater, 900lt fuel tankage. Lying Langkawi, Malaysia.

Contact details: syslangkawi.com

Discovery 67, Sapphire II of London – £980,000 VAT paid

This most highly spec’d Discovery 67, Sapphire II is on a second circumnavigation. Exhaustive inventory bolstered by a major refit in New Zealand 2022, includes lithium batteries, inverter and 800W solar panels, new mainsail, sprayhood and bimini. Lying Brisbane, Australia.

Contact details: berthoninternational.com

Jacaroni 64 RS, My Song – £985,000 (tax not paid)

A 2009 bluewater design from the Ta Yang shipyard built for comfortable passagemaking with interior and exterior helm stations, in-boom furling, twin anchors, solar panels, watermaker and aircon. There are three guest cabins, one crew cabin, four heads. Lying Panama.

Contact details: grabauinternational.com

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